No Dig Potatoes

Is there any that knows how this works and have you tried it? I have read many articles on this method and want to try it. I have been saving newspaper and have save eight bales of straw for the top cover. I'm looking forward to Spring and all the planting that will get done.

Heather, first you must have newspaper at least ten pages thick only the black and white print. Lay it down then wet it so it doesn't blow away next put the seed potato down then cover them with six inches of straw. as soon as they start to poke out cover again with straw, just leave a little of the top stick out, keep the rest covered. If you want potatoes just pull up one side and get your potatoes.

I planted my potatoes Saturday. I think we get a little warmer over here in Swampeast Missouri than in the rest of the state. If your beds are mulched make sure you pull aside the mulch to let the soil warm. I didn't have much luck with no dig potatoes but here we have Bermuda grass, which was surely created by the Devil. I've grown potatoes in plastic trash cans. I've also surface planted them with a thick straw mulch, similar to the technique you all describe.

A man from the farm was sharing with me his potato experience last year.. Apparently he went the reeeally easy route and simply planted some seed potatoes into a trash barrel filled with straw. He had drilled some holes in the bottom for drainage, kept it well watered, and voila, 20 lbs of potatoes. Amazing! I ran home to research and learned that for happier potatoes, it is recommended to lay them on an initial layer of mulch, before piling hay on top for growing medium. The method that I'm going to try was to add 6" of straw/hay at a time, wait until you see some shoots poking through, then add 6" more. I read you can build that up to two or three feet. Additionally, if you have some way of removing the sides, you can harvest the earliest grown potatoes at the bottom while the plant continues to produce higher up. So cool. I'm not sure how to adapt this technique to my trash barrel dream, but I'm hoping to come up with something.

I could've sworn that I just read an article on this. Can't remember where though.

I only have a balcony and not much access to land, has anyone tried growing potatoes in a wine barrel? I've seen the posts about growing hundreds of pounds of them, but don't know anyone that's done it.

I'm really interested in this because I have nothing but rocks (almost) to work with. This sounds great for potatoes but my question is do you fertilize, how often, with what, etc. Thanks for any info.

I did the no dig method a week ago I didn't use any fertilizer, I put down a bunch of newspaper then wet it laid the potatoes on top cover it with four inches of straw and watered it. We have had rain for two days now hope the potatoes survive, waiting to see if anything pops up then will cover them with four more inches of straw. I have a yard full of rocks also the ground is really sloped, so I made a raised bed for the potatoes out of old fence post's that had been laying around. The barrel sounds like too much work for me.

Thanks for the info, I'm probably going to put my potatoes in in a couple of weeks, weather permitting. I'm definitely going to try them this way. Last year I tried the bag growing and it didn't do well.

My potatoes finally came up and I covered them with four more inches of straw and watered them really good. A chipmunk came running out of the bed, hope he doesn't like potatoes. I have filled four raised beds and planted in two, I also have four plastic circle I use as raised beds also. Our ground is full of rocks and heavy red clay and also sloped so it is a real challenge but I am up for it. Now that I'm retired it is my hobby the garden and the three chickens I have left. The woods are full of predators have lost eight chickens so far, put up a bird net over the coop now to keep out the hawks, hope to get at least four more hens at the auction.

Thanks for the idea and the pictures. I have already did the no dig method and planted them on Saint Patrick's Day, they are all ready coming up and I covered them with four more inches of straw. Maybe next year I will try the potatoe tower next year. I have every thing ready to go out in the raised beds if the weather would cooperate and stop raining. I live in north east Georgia really wet spring.